Fading Light, Rising Darkness
by SageofLight7
Summary: AU.Samus Aran loses her grip on the light, as the galaxy teeters on the edge of darkness. A story loosely based on Star Wars, but no crossover. Link/Samus. Further description inside.
1. Prologue and Background

**Disclaimer: I do not own any elements of Nintendo, Star Wars, or other recognizable elements of the following piece.**

**Clarification: This story is not going to be an exact rendition of Star Wars, nor is it a crossover; therefore, you do not have to be familiar with Star Wars to read this story. There will be strong parallels between the plot of this story and **_**Revenge of the Sith**_**, but there will be significant differences. Main paring will be Link/Samus.**

**Warnings: This story may contain mild language, mild violence, and angst. There will be nothing hardcore or smutty.**

* * *

Bearing in mind that this is an AU, I have included some background information for clarification:

The SMASH Legion, similar to the Jedi, is an organization that keeps peace within the galaxy; they will act as warriors if necessary, but they prefer to use diplomatic tactics. The 'SMASHers' are generally in their teens or older when they are recruited and are of a variety of races and species. All possess the 'spirit' within them that enables them to serve in the Legion; the 'spirit' is not tangible, but perceived. The Legion's enemy is the mysterious Subspace Order led by a person by the name of Tabuu. This organization operates in the dark by using manipulation and corruption to destroy the Republic.

* * *

Prologue

The hot air, congested with smoke, swirled around two shadowy figures. Samus strained her eyes in attempt the view them more clearly. A sudden flare of fire illuminated them, bringing their faces into sharp focus. Samus instantly recognized one of the figures as Link.

Her shocked eyes took in his singed hair, ripped tunic, and tense pose; he clearly bore marks of a battle. The Hylian looked exhausted, and he was cornered, back pressed against a broken wall. Blood seeped into the fabric of his tunic, as he struggled to stand upright.

The other figure was unrecognizable as male or female. It wore black armor, which was once gleaming; now it was burned in places and slashed beyond repair. But most horrifying was its face. What looked like glass grotesquely punctured its skin, as blood ran in rivulets down its face. It was impossible to tell even what species the figure might have been, so gruesome was its injury.

Crouching aggressively, in snarled in a hate filled voice, "You have lost! Now you will pay the price for interfering!"

"No," Link murmured in an alarmingly exhausted tone. "It is not I who has lost." His voice was not defiant, but tinged with grief.

The bloodied figure laughed cruelly, its voice echoing eerily in the darkness. "Haven't you? The Legion was too weak to resist and the Republic is destroyed." To her horror, Samus helplessly watched the figure withdraw a gleaming gun from its belt. "And you will die here, alone. Aren't you afraid, _Link_?"

Link closed his eyes briefly. "I am sorry, Samus. I have failed you."

"I wouldn't worry about Samus! She's so much better off now!" Without so much as a warning, the figure lifted its gun and pressed the trigger.

"NO!" As the red laser lit up the area, a scream tore from Samus's throat.

**(A/N) New story! Finally! I hope to update this one at least a few times a month. As far as I can see, it will be at least 15 chapters, depending on how fast the story progresses. The first two chapters will probably be mostly exposition to set up the story.**

**If you need any clarification or explanation, please leave a review with your question or PM me and I will get back to you as soon as possible. Thanks for reading and please review!**


	2. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own any elements of Nintendo, Star Wars, or other recognizable elements of the following piece.**

**Clarification: This story is not going to be an exact rendition of Star Wars, nor is it a crossover; therefore, you do not have to be familiar with Star Wars to read this story. There will be strong parallels between the plot of this story and **_**Revenge of the Sith**_**, but there will be significant differences.**

**Warnings: This story may contain mild language, mild violence, and angst. There will be nothing hardcore or smutty.**

Chapter 1

"NO!" Samus sat up in the darkness, perspiration coating her body. She clutched her sheets tightly to her stomach as images of Link's death flashed before her eyes. Struggling to calm her breath, she assured herself over and over that it was simply a dream; Link was alive and well, probably sleeping peacefully at the SMASH Headquarters, located near the Senate building. She resisted the urge to call him, instead lying back on the pillows. The night was cool and quiet, drying the sweat on her skin.

Samus was currently on the planet of Syna, inhabited by the Psylion. These creatures were telepathic, and the planet was said to be partially conscious, granting visions of the past and future. _Yeah, right_, Samus thought, _more like send disturbing dreams and cause planetary crises_. Her assignment, which she had just completed, had been to monitor the signing of a new treaty between two warring governments. It had gone smoothly, to her relief.

Unfortunately, Samus received no additional sleep that night. She was too disturbed over the contents of the dream that had been all too realistic. Pushing it to the back of her mind, she dressed in her customary Zero Suit and collected her belongings, which were lying about the room.

Exchanging good-byes, thank-yous, and your welcomes with the embassy staff, Samus returned to her ship and prepared to return to the SMASH Headquarters. The journey would, fortunately, take no more than a few hours.

* * *

Samus landed her ship in her designated 'parking spot' and exited the vehicle, carrying her belongings. She was greeted with the typical hustle and bustle of the Headquarters as she entered through a side door.

SMASH Headquarters was a large, modern building located in the middle of the city. While the SMASH Legion itself was hundreds of years old, the new Headquarters had been built only 50 years ago. Covered in large glass windows, straight metallic edges, and razor-sharp corners, the enormous building was the epitome of the style of architecture prevalent in the capital city.

Inside the Headquarters, newer SMASH Knights rushed from place to place, as they completed their daily lessons. Sadly, ever since the war with the Subspace Order began, there had been fewer and fewer new SMASHers accepted into the Legion. There simply were not enough veteran knights to not only look for those possessing the 'spirit', but also to train them. After all, the Legion could not send untrained knights into battle.

"Samus!" The call of her name dispelled her musings. She turned to find one of her good friends coming toward her.

"Hey, Fox!" she called happily. "It's good to see you." What with the war, friends sometimes never returned from missions, and any meeting was genuinely cherished.

"You too, Samus," he grinned at her. "Good to see you're here in one piece."

"Not like it was a dangerous assignment," she scoffed. "It was diplomatic."

"Well, you just never know these days." Unfortunately he was right. His words caused slight foreboding in the air.

More to dispel the gloomy talk than anything, Samus hurriedly said, "Not that I'm not glad to see you, but I have to go make my report to the rest of the Council." The Council consisted of the more experienced Knights and they made decisions that would affect the whole legion. Samus herself was a member of the Council, along with Mario, Link, Luigi, and Pikachu. "I'll see you later, Fox."

"See you, Samus." With that, they both headed toward their respective destinations.

* * *

The Council room consisted of two rooms: one for debate and another for planning tactics. The latter was a smaller room that consisted of a round table and chairs, to easily pass around visuals and other materials. The former was grander, with a circle of chairs surrounding the edges of the room. Samus proceeded to the tactics room.

Of the Council members, only Mario and Luigi were there today. The others were most likely away on missions. Samus frowned. Link was supposed to be there as well.

"Oh, good, you're here, Samus!" Mario said warmly. As the most experienced Knight in the Legion, he was the honorary leader of the Council. While he was rather short and somewhat rotund, he was an excellent fighter, especially when using one of a variety of special mushrooms, found on his home planet of Mushroom Kingdom. "We can start now."

"Hi, Samus." This was Luigi, Mario's younger brother. Taller and thinner than his brother, he exchanged some power for more speed, though he too used mushrooms.

"Hang on, where's Link?" Samus asked. "Isn't he supposed to be here?" At least, he had said as much when she had talked with him the night before.

"Oh, he was needed for a diplomatic meeting with the Minister," Mario answered. His face became more serious. "He, on behalf of the SMASH Legion, and some other Senators are trying to persuade the Minister to give back the emergency powers that he was granted because of the war. So far, he's still claiming that they are necessary to preserve the safety of the Republic."

"Well, he's right, isn't he? The war is still going on." Samus considered Minister Tiancen to be a friend of hers. While she distrusted politicians on the whole, Tiancen was wiser than most and he certainly was not as duplicitous as the others. He was the only person she trusted who was outside of the Legion. "Anyway, let's get on with the meeting."

The debriefing she have the Council was short; there was little to say on the topic, except that it was a success. They moved on to more important matters.

Mario informed them that despite the victory they had won a few weeks back, the war was intensifying. "The problem," he said "is that we while we are destroying their army, we can't get at the leaders. We have no idea who they are, except that they're likely influencing the top levels of the Republic. And they're getting bolder. They've already pulled several planets to their side. Key planets!" Mario's brief speech brought to light their main problems, but offered no solution. Samus herself did not know how they would be able to beat the 'Purple Army', as the media called them, with so few Knights.

Luigi stepped in. "I think we really need to focus on trying to find the leaders. If we can get them, then the army would be in chaos."

"You're right. Maybe if we can find out who this…what was his name? Tab or something?" They had recently come across the name of the mysterious leader of the Subspace Order. "Whatever it is," she continued, "If we can get him, we'll probably win the war."

The meeting continued in this vein for some time, as they discussed the best way to end the war. After a couple of hours, they decided to meet again when more members were present.

* * *

Samus hurried to her room, barely stopping to talk to anyone. She hoped Link was finished with his meeting with the Minister. She had already sent Link a message to meet her in her room when he was done.

Unpacking her clothing from her travel bag, she tossed most of them into a washer. Just as she was about to send another message, she was interrupted by a knock on the door.

"Samus?" a voice called from her door.

_Finally_, she thought. Opening the door immediately, she let him past. As soon as she shut the door behind her, Samus could not wait any longer. She wound her arms around his neck and kissed him, savoring the feel of his lips on hers. Obligingly, Link wound his arms around her waist.

They broke apart several seconds later smiling at each other. "I did not expect to be assaulted when I entered your room" Link said, eyes twinkling.

Samus smirked and said mock sternly "You've been off the front lines way too long if you think _that_ was an assault." She couldn't keep the elated smile off her face long enough for the words to be taken seriously. All of her former tensions were dispelled simply by being reunited with Link. He was the reason she hated being sent off planet for long periods of time, even though she was one of the best pilots.

He simply leaned down to kiss her again, more softly than the last time. "Your mission went well?" he asked after pulling away.

"Of course," she replied. "It was a piece of cake. Really, I wish all assignments were that easy."

"I'm glad you are unhurt," he murmured, lightly brushing her hair away from her face. "There were rumors of attacks by the Subspace Army not far from here. Unconfirmed, of course," he added seeing the questioning look on her face.

Samus gestured for him to sit with her on the sofa. "So, tell me about the meeting with the Minister."

They talked long into the night about various matters, enjoying a brief respite from the horrors of war.

**(A/N) Hi everyone! This chapter is mainly exposition to set up the story and give basic information. I'm planning to bring in Minister Tiancen next chapter, which will hopefully be sometime before the end of the week. Samus's dream will also be discussed.**

**If you need any clarification or explanation, please leave a review with your question or PM me and I will get back to you as soon as possible. Thanks for reading and please review!**


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